In recent years there has been increased emphasis on energy and material conservation and, as a result, the crushing and recycling of aluminum beverage containers has become an important factor in the recycling effort. In order to recycle used beverage cans, it has been the practice to initially crush or compact the cans to reduce the volume and reduce transportation charges.
Many types of devices have been used in the past for crushing aluminum beverage cans. Small, manually operated crushers have been used by homeowners, in which the cans are individually crushed through operation of a manual handle or lever. For establishments that generate a large number of cans, such as restaurants, bars, and the like, power-operated can crushing devices have been utilized. In addition, large-sized commercial crushers have been used which are intended to receive cans from the public and not only crush the cans, but also can dispense either money or tokens in accordance with the weight of the cans deposited.
There has been a need for an inexpensive, compact, automatic can crusher, that could be used in establishments that handle a considerable quantity of beverage cans, such as restaurants, bars, fast food establishments, and the like.